PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. — For the first time in his career, Marlon Byrd decided he needed to play winter ball. Thirty-five years old and with 11 major-league seasons behind him, he left for Mexico in late September.

The driving force, Byrd says, was not redemption for a reputation sullied by a positive drug test and subsequent ban. Nor was it to show off his wares for any teams that may have then come calling. After a difficult previous two seasons, Byrd just wanted to play baseball.

"I had my suspension," Byrd said this past week. "And I didn’t play from end of June, so missing that much baseball I didn’t think would be good for me and my career. And I love playing the game so I decided to go down and get some at-bats."

He is a rare breed in the Mets’ outfield. While he is no longer the All-Star he was in 2010, Byrd is at the very least a proven commodity. Entering this season, the Mets have a paucity of those. They are relying on speculative stock. Even Lucas Duda, who seems a cinch to start the season in left field, is coming off a year in which he was demoted to the minors and struggled early this spring with a new swing.

Signed to a minor-league deal last month, Byrd is just trying to make the team. There have been no assurances publicly. Asked Friday if Byrd has done enough, manager Terry Collins replied tersely: "It’s March 8th."

But Byrd has impressed. He is hitting .348 through nine games this spring, and that does not include a long three-run home run he hit Wednesday against the Venezuelan WBC team.

"He’s what I had hoped he would be," Collins said. "I think winter ball has really helped him. I think he’s got himself into great shape coming into camp, determined to show people that he could still play. I think he’s done that."

That Byrd would need to prove himself to make a roster would have seemed far-fetched two years ago. He was an All-Star for the Cubs. He hit .293 with 12 homers in 2010. According to Fangraphs, he posted the 11th best WAR of any National League outfielder. That came after three straight seasons in which he posted an .800-plus OPS.

Then it all went awry. His 2011 season was marred when he was hit in the face by a pitch, forcing him to miss six weeks. He was hitting .308 when he was struck but returned to hit .255 over his final 75 games.

Then in 2012, in the midst of his worst season and after he was released by the Boston Red Sox, he was suspended for 50 games in June for testing positive for tamoxifen — not a performance-enhancing drug, but one that has been used by steroid users to prevent the growth of breast tissues in men and to stop post-cycle crashes.

Still, he called himself an "idiot" for failing the test.

Nonetheless, he believes his credibility was not tarnished.

"My reputation has not taken a hit at all," Byrd said. "That shows by the Mets signing me. My whole thing is loving the game and wanting to play the game. There’s other places to play but playing on the biggest level on Earth is something everybody wants to do."

Whether there will be a place for Byrd in the outfield remains to be seen. The Mets brought him into the fold with the idea of platooning him in mind. Byrd is a right-handed bat in an outfield lacking them and Collins mentioned the benefit of having a veteran on a young squad.

Nothing seems to be in stone, however. Friday, Collins said of his outfield: "Still searching."

What does seem assured is that even if Byrd does not make the roster, he will continue playing. Despite a report earlier this month that said he would retire if he could not, Byrd said that is not the case.

"Of course," Byrd said about whether he’ll play if he is not with the Mets on Opening Day. "As far as playing in the major leagues, I don’t know what’s out there for me if I don’t make this team but there is baseball left to play. I have one focus, which is making this team and helping this team."